The Auburndale Fire Department consists of 22 personnel. 18 in operations and 4 in administration. Operations consists of 3 24-hour shifts with each staffed with 5 Firefighters and 1 Lieutenant. Administration consists of the Fire Chief, Deputy Chief, Fire Marshal, and Administrative Assistant.
The department provides important community services such as fire and emergency medical responses, fire prevention / community risk reduction, and disaster preparedness. The department takes an all-hazards approach to emergency services to best serve the residents in their 31 square mile service area. To provide these services, Auburndale Fire Department firefighters train every day in multiple disciplines.
Exceeding industry standards, each Firefighter completed an average of 345 (2021) hours of training each year. This training consists of fire, EMS, water rescue, technical rescue, driving, officer training, and more.
Emergency Fire and Medical Response
In 2021, we responded to 5,223 calls for service in and around our 31 square mile service area. Nearly 67% of these calls were related to rescue and emergency medical services, with the remaining consisting of vehicle accidents, citizen assists, and fires.
We answered these calls primarily with our operations personnel using the apparatus in our fleet. The department maintains a front-line fleet consisting of a 1,500-gpm pumper truck, 107-foot aerial truck, 3000 gallon tanker, 2 brush trucks, a rescue boat, and a command truck.
Fire Prevention
Our Fire Prevention department is led by the Fire Marshal. This division conducts construction plans review and inspections of occupancies in the city to ensure they meet fire and life safety codes. Our Fire Marshal approaches businesses with a “here to help” attitude that many times involves education and guidance to help them meet fire safety codes and standards.
Another facet of the prevention division is public outreach. Each year we are involved in school and daycare visits, community events hosted at the station, and a well-known fire prevention week in October where we host up to 800 children and families in the area. It is during this time we share the basics of fire safety through various presentations and tours.
Disaster Preparedness
Our department is on the frontlines of emergency response in the case of a natural or man-made disaster in the City of Auburndale. A natural disaster in our area usually refers to hurricanes, tornadoes, or flooding, while man-made disasters typically include gas leaks, toxic spills, and other destructive events.
Mitigation is important part of our disaster response and includes a lot of background work such as the work of our fire marshal to uphold optimal fire standards for structures in the city. It includes Standard Operating Procedures for the containment and clean-up of toxic chemicals. It also includes making sure our station is resilient in the case of incident so that our crews can respond to emergencies in the city.
When an emergency such as a hurricane arises, the City of Auburndale Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is activated and all department leaders report to the designated EOC location so that they can work together to restore and provide service to the residents of Auburndale. The Fire Department plays an important role in the EOC as a liason between the City of Auburndale and Polk County’s emergency services.
